The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has rescinded all designated wind energy areas (WEAs) on the US Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). This action aligns with Secretary’s Order 3437 and the Presidential Memorandum dated January 20, 2025, which temporarily withdraws all areas on the OCS from offshore wind leasing and calls for a review of the federal government’s leasing and permitting practices for wind projects.
WEAs were initially identified as locations most suitable for offshore wind energy development. With this action, BOEM has cancelled over 3.5 million acres of unleased federal waters that had been earmarked for wind energy projects across the Gulf of America, Gulf of Maine, the New York Bight, California, Oregon, and the Central Atlantic.
In July 2025, the US Senate approved the One Big Beautiful Bill, accelerating the phase-out of wind and solar tax credits for projects starting after June 2026 and operational beyond 2027. Just last week, the Department of the Interior announced four policy measures regarding wind power projects including evaluating whether to stop onshore wind development on some federal lands and halting future offshore wind lease sales.
REGlobal’s Views: The latest announcement is a big blow to the US offshore wind sector, which was planning 30 GW of capacity additions in this segment by 2030. The recent policy interventions of the new administration regarding offshore wind, have caused major uncertainty amongst investors, developers, and technology suppliers for offshore wind projects and the overall renewable energy sector.
